Amsterdam Window
Sinterklaas! December 6th is the Feast of St Nicholas, 4th Century Bishop of Myra in Lycia, now Turkey, Patron Saint of Amsterdam and friend to good children everywhere. He arrives in the Netherlands from his home in Spain on a ship with his sidekick, Zwarte Piet, and his white horse, Schimmel. Leave out your clogs the night before and if you've been good, in the morning you'll find them full of pepernoten, chocolate initials, marzipan and other yummy treats. Not so good, and you get a lump of coal. In the good old days you got threatened with a beating with a birch roe and being carted back to Spain in his sack to work in the salt mines.
Sinterklass is a world of sweets.
Pepernoten
2 cups plain flour
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp cinnamon, ground
1/4 tsp anise seed, ground
1/2 tsp cloves; ground
1 1/4 cups brown sugar, firmly packed
2 large eggs
1 tbsp candied orange peel, diced
In a large bowl sift flour and baking soda together with all the spices.
Add remaining ingredients and combine until mixture forms a dough.
With floured hands, form the dough into about 60 1/2-inch balls and place on greased baking sheets.
Bake in a pre-heated 175C/350F degree oven for 15-20 minutes, until light brown.
Homemade Taai Taai
1 cup of sugar
1 cup of liquid honey
1 cup of water
3 1/3 cups of flour
1 tsp of baking soda
pinch of salt
1 tsp of spirits of anise or 1 tablespoon of anise
1 tsp of cinnamon
1/4 tsp of ground cloves
Bring sugar, honey and water to a boil. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
Add remaining ingredients and mix well. Spread on a greased baking sheet.
Bake for 30 minutes @ 160C/325F or until golden brown
Cool and cut into 2inch/5cm squares
Almond Filled Speculaas
1/4 cup unblanched almonds
1 1/3 cups flour
1 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
pinch salt
1/2 cup butter, soft
2/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tbsp rum or apple juice
1 packet (about 7oz/200g) almond paste
1 egg, slightly beaten
24 blanched almond halves
Place almonds in blender or food processor; process to a fine meal (but don't overprocess or nuts will become oily or pasty).
In a separate bowl, stir together ground almonds, flour, cinnamon, cloves, baking powder, nutmeg and salt to combine thoroughly and set aside.
In a mixer bowl, combine butter and brown sugar, and beat until fluffy and well blended. Gradually beat in half of the flour mixture.
Add rum; then gradually blend in the remaining flour mixture.
Shape dough into a flattened ball.
Wrap dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate until firm (about 1 hour).
Place chilled dough between sheets of plastic wrap and roll out to a 10x12 inch rectangle.
Divide almond paste in half; on lightly floured surface, use fingertips to roll each half into a 12-inch-long strand.
Cut dough in half to make two 5-by-12-inch rectangles. Along the long
edge of each, place a strand of almond paste.
Carefully roll each dough rectangle tightly around almond paste and press dough over almond paste to seal at edge and ends.
Enclose rolls in plastic film and refrigerate until firm (at least 2 hours, or overnight).
Heat oven to 165C/325F.
Carefully transfer filled rolls, seam down to a large, lightly greased baking sheet.
Brush lightly with beaten egg, space 12 almond halves down length of each roll.
Bake until surface feels firm when touched gently and almonds are browned (25 to 30 minutes).
Cool on baking sheet for 10 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely.
Cut rolls between almonds to make 24 cookie slices.
Once cooled, store all these in airtight containers.
Icon of St Nicholas
Once in the land of Lycia there was a great famine, and in the city of Myra there was an extreme shortage of food. Feeling pity for the unfortunate people who were perishing from hunger, God's bishop appeared at night in a dream to a certain merchant who happened to be in Italy, who loaded his entire ship with grain and intended to sail to another land. Giving him a pledge of three gold coins, the saint commanded him to sail to Myra and sell the grain there. Awaking and finding the gold in his hand, the merchant was frightened, amazed by such a dream which was accompanied by the miraculous appearance of money. The merchant did not dare to disobey the command of the saint, went to the city of Myra and sold out his bread to its inhabitants. At the same time he did not hide from them the appearance of St. Nicholas to him in a dream. Having acquired such consolation in hunger and listening to the tale of the merchant, the citizens gave glory and thanks to God and extolled their miraculous nourisher, the great Bishop Nicholas.
from The Life of The Holy Hierarch and Wonderworker NICHOLAS Archbishop of Myra in Lycia.
Got flour? Get baking!
Vrolijk Kerstfeest en een Gelukkig Nieuwjaar!